The next time you drink from a Coca Cola can or open a frothy Budweiser pack, look at the can carefully. It could well have the Aditya Birla stamp.

Hindalco will make Coke, Budweiser can bodies
The next time you drink from a Coca Cola can or open a frothy Budweiser pack, look at the can carefully. It could well have the Aditya Birla stamp.

In the largest Indian acquisition abroad after the Tatas-Corus deal, the Aditya Birla group has acquired Canadian aluminium major Novelis, which makes roughly 12,000 crore can bodies (basic ingredients to manufacture cans) for Coke and Budweiser beer — for $6 billion (Rs 26,317 crore).

The Noveilis turnover of $9.5 billion (Rs 41,752 cr) is a little lower than the Aditya Birla’s group’s total revenues of $11.5 billion (Rs 50,542 cr).

“It is consistent with our vision of taking India to the world. The acquisition would make us one of the low-cost aluminium producers in the world,” said Aditya Birla group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla. Post acquisition, Hindalco will become the world’s largest producer of finished aluminium products. And it be 5th in global aluminium-producer rankings.

There is another good news for India: Hindalco will transfer the technology from Novelis, so can bodies will soon be made in India. The Birlas have clinched the deal after six months of hectic negotiations.

“Noveilis acting CEO Ed Blechschmidt called up on Sunday morning to convey the news that we have won the deal,” said an executive director of Hindalco. HT was the first to report on January 26 that the Birlas are set to take over Novelis.